Truck



TRUCK Filed Dec. 5, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 12 y@ 229 if 2y 43g a?.

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Cla/udc Greene AZZoTnez/s.

`une 8 1926. 1,587,773

c. GREENE TRUCK Filed Dec. 5, 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet? T 5 /fe 26 46 40'IIII H||| 15 fnvener; Chaude Greene.

'Azzome Patented June 8, 1926. l I

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CLAUDE GREENE, OF

onIcAc-zo, ILLINOIS.

TRUCK.

Application filed December 3, 1923. Serial No. 678,347.

The trucl; forming the subject matter of the present application forpatent hasbeen designed particularly for use in transporting merchandisefrom warehouse to warehouse or to freight cars although capable of otheruses.

An important object of the invention is the provision of a power truckof this character embodying a novel and improved load engaging andsupporting means whereby the load may be readily taken up or set down.In this connection the novel truck is readily adaptable to a certainload-supporting rack, on which l secured Letters Patent No. 1,142,088,dated June 8, 1915.

The invention further contemplates the furnishing of a load engaging andsupporting means which will be mechanically operable and whichabsolutely obviates the necessity for manual labor in connection withthe engaging or disengaging of the load from the truck.

A. further object of the invention is to provide a truck of thischaracter which will r be relatively simple in construction, strong anddurable, and highly efficient in the use for which it is designed.

The various features of novelty which characterize my invention arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this specification. For a bet-ter understanding of theinvention, however, and of the advantages possessed by it, referenceshould be had to the accompanying drawings and description in which Ihave illustrated and described what I now regard as the preferredembodiment of my invention.

1n the drawings :M

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a truck constructed in accordance withmy invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan View thereof, with a detail shown partly broken away;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the truck;

Fig. d is a sectional view taken on the` line 4--11 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a sectional detail taken on the line 5 of'Fig. 2, and

Fig. 6 is a perspective View in fragmentary form showing the frontportion of the truck applied to engage the patented loadsupporting rackmentioned above.

Referring specifically to the drawings, in which like referencecharacters have been used to designate similar parts in all views,

numeral 10 denotes the flooring of the truck which is supported by aframe which embodies channel members 11, the frame converging at theforward portion as shown in Fig. 2 to facilitate turning of the truckwhen loaded as will be present-ly apparent. Supported amidships of theplatform 1() is a box 12 which houses the battery and the driving motorof the truck, which latter is indicated at 13, power being supplied tothe rear wheels 1-1 of the truck by means of suitable gears 15, 16, 17and 18 as indicated in Fig. 1, lchains 19 and 19a being employed forestablishing a driving connection between one of these gears. The truckframe is supported at its forward portion by means of twin wheels 20,the axle 21 thereof being carried by a king pin 22 which is suitablyjournaled in the truck frame and carries at its upper end a rotatableplatform or turntable 23, the same being keyed or otherwise rigidlyattached to the king pin 22 for rotation therewith. The platform 23 issupported above the floor 10 of the truck which can if desired beprovided with rollers oranti-friction means beneath the platform tofacilitate turning thereof. The front of this platform v23 is adapted tosupport the load as will be hereinafter apparent, and in order toprevent the rear portion of the platform from rising from the. weight ofthe load .I have provided antifriction rollers 211 which are supportedby brackets 25 carried by the flooring and frame of the truck.

The truck will be steered by means of an arm 2G which is rigidlyattached to the king pin 22, which arm has a'pivotal connection with alongitudinally disposed arm 27 which leads rearwardly of the frame andhas a. pivotal connection with a lateral arm 28 which is rigidlyattached to a vertical shaft or column 29 upon the upper end of which isa steering wheel 30. Suitable supporting brackets may be carried by thebox 12 for reinforcing this shaft 29. The operators seat will be at therear of the machine as indicated at 31, it being proper here to mentionthat the lever for controlling the motor is shown at 32. A suitablecoupling or connection may be attached to the rear of the truck asindicated at 33 whereby a trailer may be hooked on.

The load engaging and supporting p0rtion of the truck will. now bedescribed, the same comprising essentially a frame 31 havifo ing alongitudinally adjustable section which carries a laterally disposedplate or step 36 which is adapted to be inserted beneath the load aswill presently become apparent. The longitudinally adjustable connectionbetween the frame 34 and the frame 35 is attained by slotting the sideportions of the frame 35 as indicated at 3T to receive bolts or studs 33which are carried by the frame 34. In order to control the longitudinaladjustment of the frames 34 anc 35, I have provided an elongated screwrod 39 which is controlled by a hand wheel 40 at the upper end of theframe 34, the lower end of this screw rod 39 being received in a tappedbearing 4l in the upper portion of the frame 35. From the foregoing itwill be apparent that the frame may be readily adjusted by manipulatingthe hand wheel 40. At the bottom of the frame 34 and at the back thereofproject two spaced bloc rs 42 carrying a shaft 43 which niay be keyed orotherwise non-rotatably secured in the blocks 42, the ends of the shaftextending beyond the outer faces of the blocks and being received inbearings 44 projecting from the front end of the platform or turntable23. From the foregoing it will be apparent that the frame 34 with itsadjustable frame 35 will be pivotally attached to the turntable 23, therelative adjustment of the frame 34 with respect to the turntable beingcontrolled by means of a worm gear 45 meshing with a gear 46 which iskeyed to the shaft 43 intermediate the two blocks 42. The worm gear 45will be supported by a bearing 47 carried by the turntable 23, this wormgear receiving rotation in either direction from a reversible motor 48which will be controlled by the lever 49 at the rear of the lbox 12adjacent the 'drivers seat.

In Fig. 5 of the drawings the shaft 45il of the worm gear 45 is shownextending` through the bearing 47, which latter is provided with a pairof spaced bushings 47a. The shaft is preferably provided with a sleeve47b which is keyed to rotate with the shaft and prevent longitudinalmovement thereof.

From the foregoing description read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, the novel features of the truck so far described will bereadily apparent to those skilled in the art. My patented loadreceiving' Lrack is preferably used in connection with the truck, itbeing generally denoted at 50 in Fig. 6, from which it will be apparentthat it constitutes a frame upon which packages and bones may bestacked. The rea-r vertical members 5l of the rack 5() have been showndevoid of intermediate parts for clearness and are extended beyond thebottom horizontal rails 52 thereof to form feet 53. Spaced longitudinalrails 54 are turned down at their forward ends to form front feet 55while the rear ends of these rails 54 extend beyond the rear end of theframe as indicated at 54a, the purpose of this construction beingpresently apparent.

The rack 50 being supported in spaced relation from the floor of thewarehouse or freight car it may be loaded with boxes or packages and theprojecting plate or step 36 of the platform 35 run under the rack, theends 542l of the members 54 being extended beneath the upper edge ef auarch 56 which is formed in the bottom of the frame member 34. A hook 57carried at the upper end of the frame member 34 is now engaged with theupper end of the rack i 50. The worm 45 will now be rotated in adirection to actuate the gear 46 to tilt the frame 34 rearwardly, theextensions 54u of the rack members 54 co-operating with the arch 56 ofthe frame 34 to assist the hook 57 in drawing the rack 50 rearwardlywith the frame 34 as it tilts backward. It will be understood thatpreparatory to inserting the step or shelf 36 under the rack 56 theframe 35 will be so adjusted as to bring the portion 36 immediatelyunder the adjacent portion of the rack 50. lVhen the frame 34 has beenmoved to the dotted line position in Fig. l the truck will be moved offwith its load to its destination, and it will be apparent that theconverging forward portion Yof the truck frame ll permits freemanipulation of the turntable 23 even where the load projectsconsiderably beyond the sides of the frame 34.

V/hile the rack member 50 with its associatedprojecting frame engagingends 54 is considered a highly important feature of the invention, yetit will be understood that the load engaging and carrying portions ofthe truck are not necessarily limited to use with such a frame but mayalso be employed in connection with stacks of packages or boxes. Nomanual labor is needed in loading the carrying end of the truck sincethe relative a'djustability of the frames 34 and 35, together withthetiltable'mounting of the frame 34 permits the necessary manipulationrequisite for picking up or setting down a load. The novel truck is thusnot only applicable where ordinary or level con` ditions exist, butalsol where the approach for the truck is uneven with the floor on whicha loaded rack is placed, such as the usual position of a gang plankleading into the freight car in which the rack is placed and loaded.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed as above indicated, yet it will be understood that I do notpropose to restrict myself strictly to the details set forth, sincevarious changes and modifications will immediately suggest themselves tothose skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of myinvention, the scope of which is defined by the following claims.

That I claim as new and desire to Secure by Letters Patent is zi l. In adevice of the type described, the combination of a truck having aforward converging portion to which is pivotally secured a turntable, asupporting frame adapted to extend outwardly in front of said truckhaving rearwardly extending bearings, a shaft extending through andrigidly secured in said bearings, the ends of the shaft adapted toextend through and rotate about bearings on the turntable and means fortilting said frame.

2. In a device of the type described, the combination of a truck havinga forward converging portion to which is pivotally secured a turntable,a supporting frame pivotally secured to the turntable and adapted toextend outwardly in front of said truck and means for tilting saidframe, comprising a gear rigidly attached to the pivotal means, a shafthaving one end adapted to engage a motor and extend forwardly through abearing secured to the turntable and the forward end thereof terminatingin a worm adapted to engagesaid gear.

3. In a device of the type described, the combination of a truck havinga forward converging portion to which is pivotally secured a turntable,a supporting frame pivotally secured to the turntable and adapted toextend outwardly in front of said truck said frame having at its lowerportion an ly to engage the screwthreads in the lug of the toe plate,means for turning said shaft, and means for tilting said frame.

4. In a device of the type described, the combination of a truck havinga forward converging portion to which is pivotally secured a turntable,a supporting frame pivotally secured to the turntable and adapted toextend outwardly in front of said truck having rearwardly extendingbearings, a shaft extending through and rigidly secured in saidbearings, the ends of the shaft adapted to extend through and rotatewith the bearings on the turntable, said frame having at its lowerportion an L-shaped toe plate provided with elongated slots adapted toengage bolts provided in said frame, a rearwardly extending lug securedto the upper portion of said toe plate and interiorly screwthreaded, avertical shaft secured in a bearing at the upper portion of the frameand extending downwardly to engage the screwthreads in the lug of thetoe plate, means for turning said vertical shaft, and means for tiltingsaid frame.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature.

CLAUDE GREENE.

